Portugal established trading ports at far-flung locations like Goa, Ormuz, Malacca, Kochi, the Maluku Islands, Macau, and Nagasaki.Taking advantage of the rivalries that pitted Hindus against Muslims, the Portuguese established several forts and trading posts between 15. Portugal’s purpose in the Indian Ocean was to ensure the monopoly of the spice trade.While following the same south-westerly route as Gama across the Atlantic Ocean, Cabral made landfall on the Brazilian coast-the territory that he recommended Portugal settle. The second voyage to India was dispatched in 1500 under Pedro Álvares Cabral.The Portuguese goal of finding a sea route to Asia was finally achieved in a ground-breaking voyage commanded by Vasco da Gama, who reached Calicut in western India in 1498, becoming the first European to reach India.Henry the Navigator, aware of profit possibilities in the Saharan trade routes, invested in sponsoring voyages that, within two decades of exploration, allowed Portuguese ships to bypass the Sahara. In 1415, the city of Ceuta was occupied by the Portuguese in an effort to control navigation of the African coast.As early as 1317, King Denis made an agreement with Genoese merchant sailor Manuel Pessanha, laying the basis for the Portuguese Navy and the establishment of a powerful Genoese merchant community in Portugal. Portuguese sailors were at the vanguard of European overseas exploration, discovering and mapping the coasts of Africa, Asia, and Brazil.

What routes did vasco da gama take